Cutting tool for dressing poultry



Nov. 10, 1953 5. J. OGRABISZ 2,658,235

CUTTING TOOL. FOR DRESSING POULTRY Filed Oct. 29 1951 A S fa p12 212i Qgmb sg,

3 wadfi orneg Patented Nov. 10, 195 3 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CUTTING TOOL FOR DRESSING POULTRY Stephen J. Ograbisz, Hamburg, N. Y.

Application October 29, 1951, Serial No. 253,635

Claims.

My invention resides in a double bladed cutting tool for severing the lower legs, heads, and necks from turkeys and chickens, in the process of dressing the fowl for market. It will be herein described with reference to the best embodiment now known to me, which is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a perspective of the tool, shown as mounted for use on a work table, and cooperatively related to a waste chute and catch basin;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary front elevation on an enlarged scale, with portions broken away, and with the upper blade shown in elevated position in dotted lines;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary rear elevation;

Fig. 4 is a section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken on the line 55 of Fig. 3.

My preferred practice in preparing such fowl as turkeys for sale to the consumer is to kill by puncturing the throat, drain, defeather, eviscerate and clean, and thereafter remove the tendons, trim the leg joints, remove the head, and also sever the neck at its junction with the body. These final amputations may, of course, be done with an ordinary hand knife, but they are then time consuming, and are frequently not satisfactorily performed, in which event the fowl is less attractive to the purchaser. of the neck at its innermost joint or point of connection with the body is a particularly difficult operation for the inexperienced, equipped with only a hand knife, as the location makes the joint somewhat inaccessible.

According to the present invention, I provide a double bladed shear, having an upper pivotally mounted blade which may be swung away from or toward the lower fixed blade, the opening between the blades being sufficient to insert the various appendages to be removed, and the blades themselves being so contoured and proportioned as to enable them to be somewhat automatic in locating the precise point or joint at which the severance is desired.

More particularly, the present tool comprises a relatively thin vertical supporting frame I i having flanges I2 at its lower end, which are provided with apertures I3 to receive bolts or screws It, for fixedly mounting the tool on a suitable work support, such as a table T. The frame I l is formed with a horizontal ledge 15 along its front face, against which abuts the lower edge of a fixed lower blade 16 having plane surfaces, which is detachably secured to the frame by screws IT.

The severance is delimited by a stop ledge 2|, between the lugs and the upper portion of the lower blade [6.

The lug I8 is drilled and tapped at a point below the upper edge of the lower blade l6, and the lower blade is also drilled to provide an aligned aperture, into which may be inserted a screw 22, I

of sufiicient length to project beyond the rear of the lug, to receive a lock nut 23. This screw serves as a pivot for an upper blade 25, also having plane surfaces and it will be noted that the width of the clearance gap between the lugs l8 and i9 and the lower blade I5 is such that the upper blade 25 will move through it with a rubbing or friction fit, and therefore with only a working clearance.

In assembling the upper blade 25, the pivot screw 22 is taken up to impose the desired amount of friction between the lug l8, blade 25, and adjacent portion of the lower blade I6, as well as between the engageable portions of the lug l9 and the upper and lower blades. It will be seen that as the upper blade 25 is swung down, its rearunpivoted surface slides over the plane surface of the lug 19, the lug therefore servingas a heel to guide the blade 25 into close engagement with the blade 16. The lug l9 should therefore be sufficiently high to be engaged by the blade 25 at the outset of the cutting stroke, and its top may be slightly rounded or beveled to facilitate the desired action.

The blade 25 is manipulated by a bent handle 21 having a depending flange 28 welded to its inner end, and to which the blade is secured by bolts 29 passing through appropriately located apertures. When employing a round piece of tubing for the handle, it is advantageous to weld the flange 28 offset from the perpendicular diameter by about the thickness of the blade 25. This will therefore direct the thrust imposed on the handle substantially normal into the blade, and minimize adventitious side thrusts which would tend to cause misalignments.

Referring particularly to Figs. 2, 3, and 5, it will be seen that the lower blade I6 is formed with parallel straight horizontal edges, and that the upper edge 3| is ground between its ends with a long taper 32 which merges into a short high angle taper 33, which in turn merges into the plane opposite surface of the blade. The lower edge 34 of the upper blade 25 is likewise ground between its ends with low and high angle tapers 35 and 36, but these are concavely arcuate, rather than straight, as indicated by the reference numeral 31 in Fig. 3. It will here also be noted that, when the blade 25 is in its lowermost position, the edge 3| of the lower blade I6 is above the high angle taper 36 of the upper blade 25 throughout its extent.

The arcuate edge 31 merges into straight and unfinished edges 38 and 39 which abut the ledge 2| when the blade 25 is lowered. The lower corner of the blade 25 is cut on an angle of about 45, as indicated by the numeral M. It will be understood that, when the handle 2'! is raised, the beveled edge 4! will abut the ledge 2 I, thereby providing a limit stop against further rotation. At this time, the blades are sufliciently spaced to insert whatever appendage of the fowl it is desired to remove. The blade 25 is not raised sufficiently, however, to overcome the force of gravity on the handle 21 and free end of the blade, so that, if the user removed his hand from the handle, the blade would drop. The purpose of this :is to make the user keep one hand on the handle during operation, as the tool will .cut fingers as well as turkey necks, and one hand is enough for the bird.

Another safety feature resides in providing holes 42 and 43 in the blade '25 and lug l9, which are aligned when the blade .25 is down and the cutting edgesarethereby-mutually covered. The hasp-nf a small padlock may be passed through these apertures when the tool is not in use, thereby'mutually safeguarding the tool and the digits of small children to whom such an appliance might bean attraction.

I willnow describe my own preferred practice inzusing the tool. In order to extract-the tendons, Imtiilizethe machine described 'in-my copending application, Serial No. 222,035, filed April 20, 1951, now Ratent No. 2,653,346, patented September 29, 1953, which severs the leg just 'belowtheknee joint .during the .extracting operation. There are therefore left two short stubs of bone at :the unis of :the thighs. The bird is balanced :on the palm 'of the left hand, or, if it is'a large bird, it islaid on ritsback on the table T, and the left hand is :used to ,position the knee :joint'over the upperedge -31 ofthe fixed knive l8. Ihe handle 2?! .is thenpulled'down-with the right hand, and, if thereihas been-even a reasonable approximation :in positioning the 'joint, the .arcuate edge 31, .upon contact, will nudge the joint into; ,proper position, so that the leg stub will be severed directly and cleanly at the joint. The same operation is then performed on the other leg-joint. It isconducive to-clea-nliness during use of the tool to .provide'a chute C and catch basin B, as indicated in Fig. 1,to directthe refuse away from the -.floor.or table.

The operation of severing the waste .head is effected in asimilar manner, the neck being positioned at the first joint below the head-containingv edible substance. The neck is then. drawn out of its sheath of loose skinwith the aidof asimplehand knife out if necessary-until there can'befelt and exposed the junction of the neck with thebody. The neck isagain laid across the lower knife, and the left hand is employed .to elevate .the bird at an angle,.so that this junction pointis on-the knife. As .the lever 21 .is swung down, the free end of the blade '25 engages .the heel 49, thereby retaining it in desired position, andthe arcuate edge;3l, together with-theoutwardly facingbevels1-36 and 35, again: correct -.for anyzminor; misalignment, to insure. a: clean cut. at

the joint with a minimum of bone fragmentation. The severed neck may then be cut into as many pieces as are desired for delivery with the fowl to the purchaser.

When made from suitable material, such as tool steel which has been hardened and ground, the blades l6 and 25 will, with reasonable care, perform thousands of cutting operations without requiring replacement or regrinding. It will be seen that they may be readily removed if desired, and that they may be reassembled easily and quickly adjusted to bring their plane mutually engaging surfaces into proper position.

I ,am aware that it has heretofore been proposed to provide double bladed tools of various shapes and forms for use as poultry decapitators. None which has been brought to my attention, however, incorporates a blade combination capable of exercising the above described joint locating or centering effect, nor capable of effecting a close amputation of the neck from the body. I therefore do not assume to claim all poultry tools broadly as my invention, but I do intend that my invention shall be accorded a scope of equivalents and modifications consistent with that expressed by the following claims.

I claim:

1. A cutting tool for dressing poultry comprisingan upright frame having spaced upper corners and having means thereon at the bottom thereof to secure the frame to a work surface, spaced lugs at the upper corners of the frame, said lugs being of less thickness than the frame thereby to provide a stop ledge along the upper edge of the frame, a fixed cutter blade secured to the face of the frame and projectin 'upwardly above said stop ledge and said upper edge, a movable cutter blade pivotally mounted on one of said lugs and adapted to slide when rotated in contact with said lugs and the fixed blade and to bottom on said stop ledge, an operating handle connected to the upper edge of .the movable .blade, said blades being formed with plane surfaces over the mutually engaging inside portions thereof and with tapered faces Opposite said plane .surfaces, thereby to provide cutting edges, one of said cutting :edges :being substantially straight and thefother of saidcutting edgesbeinglccnceve, said edges completely overlapping each other when themovableabladeabuts the stop ledge.

.2. Acuttingtool assetforth claim 1,;wherein the movable blade is form d with a .cut away corner adjacent its pivotal mounting adapted to abut :the stop ledge when the blade is swung upwardly, and the operating handle projects be? yond an .end of ;the a movable blade and .is of such length and-masszas tocause theblade to tend to drop bygravity when the corner abuts the :ledge.

:3. ,ncuttingitool as set forth in claim 1, wherein the movableiblade is .formedwith a concavecutting :edge and the fixed zbladeeis formed witha substantially straight edge, and both edges are formed .on their outer surfaces with long :tapers merging into high angle :tapers, which in turn merge into the opposite plane surfaces .of the blades.

4. -A .cutting stool for dressin poultry comprising a relatively thin rectilinear upright frame :havin spaced upper corners and: adapted to-besecured to .a work surface, asubstantially rectilinear fixed blade-secured to one-faceof the frame and projecting .above the upper edge thereof, spaced upstanding lugs formed $011 :the lllpercorners :of thegframe. and projecting. above the .upper edge ,of .the fixed :blade, the surfaces of the lugs facing the fixed blade being spaced therefrom to provide a clearance gap and ledge along the upper edge of the frame and in front of the lugs, a movable blade pivotally mounted between one of said lugs and the adjacent projecting portion of the fixed blade, said movable blade having a thickness substantially equal to the width of the clearance gap whereby it may move therein with rubbing clearance against the surfaces of the lugs and the fixed blade, an operating lever extending along the upper edge of the movable blade and projecting outwardly therefrom, said movable blade being located substantially below the longitudinal axis of said lever, said blades being formed with plane surfaces on their mutually engaging portions and with tapered surfaces on their opposite sides merging into their free edges, one of said blades having a concave cutting edge, said movable blade being formed with bottom corner edges adapted to bottom on said ledge when the movable blade is positioned its maximum extent into the clearance gap, the cutting edges of the blades then overlapping each other, said movable blade being formed with an aperture, the other of said lugs being formed with an aperture alignable with the aperture formed in the movable blade when the movable blade is bottomed on said ledge.

5. A cutting tool for dressing poultry comprising a relatively thin rectilinear upright frame formed with upper and lower edges, flange means on the lower edge for mounting the frame on a horizontal work surface, a horizontal ledge formed on the upper portion of the frame below the upper edge, said frame having spaced upper corners, spaced upstanding lugs at and projecting upwardly from said corners above said upper edge, said lugs being of less thickness than the frame along the upper edge to form a second ledge along the upper edge, a plane sur- 6 ifaced fixed knife blade disposed horizontally across the first named ledge and connected to the frame, said blade projecting upwardly above the upper edge, a movable plane surfaced knife blade pivotally mounted between one of said lugs and one end of the fixed blade for swinging movement toward the other lug, said movable blade having a thickness substantially equal to the width of said second ledge whereby the movable blade has rubbing engagement with said one lug and fixed blade at all times and with the other of said lugs when said movable blade is swung downwardly, an operating handle disposed substantially in the plane of the movable blade and projecting outwardly therebeyond at the end thereof remote from the pivotal mounting, said fixed blade having an upper horizontal and substantially straight cutting edge, said movable blade having a bottom cutting edge which is concave for a distance along said edge at least equal to the distance between the lugs, said movable blade having substantially straight portions along the remainder of its lower edge and adapted to abut the second ledge when the movable blade is lowered, said movable blade having a curvature maintaining the cutting edges of the blades in overlapping relation throughout their extent when the movable blade is so lowered, the outer portions of the cutting edges of the blades being tapered toward their adjacent surfaces.

STEPHEN J. OGRABISZ.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,271,016 Carlson July 2, 1918 1,337,263 Pfeifer Apr. 20, 1920 1,783,699 Butcher Dec. 2, 1930 1,849,261 Winton Mar. 14, 1932 

